GOD ASKS: WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?

A WOMAN IS CONFRONTED WITH HER SIN – Genesis 3:13

I am 100% certain that God wasn’t asking for Eve’s resume or her list of life accomplishments. Instead, God was directly confronting Eve’s very direct disobedience to His explicit instructions. In my sanctified imagination, God’s voice was booming in this case. Definitely not a still, small whisper.

This is actually the 4th question posed by God in Genesis 3. We talked about the first question last week — “Where are you?” God’s 2nd question was “Who told you that you were naked?” His 3rd was “Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” And then the most pointed one of the 4, “What is this you have done?“

Adam passed the buck to Eve. Eve passed the buck to the serpent. But, in the end, she knew she was caught. She believed the serpent and disobeyed God. Now she’d have to suffer the consequences, and so would all of mankind after her. God’s words must have rumbled deep in her soul.

I am both grateful and deeply burdened by God’s ability to know my sin and call me on it without accepting any excuses. And, I don’t care if it appears that I’ve “gotten off lightly.” I KNOW there are consequences for every one of my sins.

When I lied to my parents.

When I had hateful thoughts toward another person.

When I wanted what someone else had.

When I was overly critical of someone else and not willing to acknowledge my own faults.

When I lashed out in anger.

When my motives weren’t pure.

When I was jealous.

When I was selfish.

When my impatience showed up in rash decisions or thoughtless words.

Every time. EVERY time. God caught up with me and said, “Connie, what have you done?” or “Connie, what are you doing?” And, most of the time, His words boomed — at least inside my head.

Believe me, my list of sins is MUCH longer than that, but those are between God and me.

I praise God for His promise to forgive me. ” If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 NKJV).

We sin. We’re sorry. We ask for forgiveness. God forgives us. But we still have to face the consequences. In Eve’s case, she and Adam were thrown out of the Garden of Eden and never allowed back in. Things were never perfect for them again.

God said the same words to Cain in Genesis 4:10, right after He asked him “Where is Abel your brother?” Cain answered with guilty indifference. “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?”

Look at the punishment God pronounced on Cain in chapter 4 verses 11-12. Sometimes the consequences we suffer are immediate. Other times they are drawn out over many years, even carrying over to the next generation.

Wouldn’t it be better if we heard God’s voice asking us this question BEFORE we gave in and committed the sin in the first place? He knows when we’re contemplating a sin and when we carry it out, and it always causes our relationship with Him to suffer.

I have some sins I need to confess this morning, this very minute, so my relationship with God can be right again. What about you?